Erised desirE
by Sassy SOBettes
Summary: One chilly night, Harry insists that he has something to show her. A dark room in the castle holds something from his past that he wishes to share.


[A/N: I was in an incredibly odd mood when I wrote this. I guess I wasn't my cheerful self : (. Oh well, I thought it was rather pretty when I wrote it. Got a bit lost in the moment.]  
  
*****  
  
*****  
  
Erised desirE  
  
"Let's go!" Harry pulled her along quickly through the dark corridor. The two were pressed awfully close together, as to prevent each other from being seen. It was quite cramped under an invisibility cloak. He remembered back in his first year when he had fit three bodies under there. Now he was much larger and glad that those other two bodies weren't around at that particular moment. He reached out and opened a door at the end of the hall. It creaked a bit, but was closed before it had even opened all the way.  
  
"What is this place?" Xanne asked, abandoning the cloak and looking around the room with amazement. The room was completely deserted; moonlight shone through the open window and illuminated a few pieces of cozy furniture along the walls. Though there was light, it was filled with shadow and had a sort of mystery about it. She spun, taking it all in. Having never been in this particular room before, it was likely that she would never be back.  
  
"I come here sometimes, to get away from everything," his eyes moved to the floor, avoiding hers. She had but a minute to wonder what in his life he needed to get away from before he looked up once more. "I want to show you something, sit down."  
  
She moved over to a small couch that was lit softly from the open window that also let in a cool breeze. It wasn't very comfortable and she shifted a bit. He had disappeared into the shadows and soon she got the distinct feeling that this room was a quite a bit bigger than it had seemed.  
  
Footsteps drew nearer to the room and she feared that she was caught. He wouldn't just leave her there and tip off Filch or a teacher, would he? Her heart was eased a bit as he came into view, carrying a large object in his arms. He set it down on the in front of the couch and only then did she see what it was.  
  
It was a guitar case, quite battered, but it was a guitar case nonetheless. And in guitar cases were guitars, which was enough to make her grin. The shining natural finish on the top of the acoustic shone brightly, and amidst the smudges and fingerprints, she could make out the initials 'R.L.' etched in black along the pick guard. Harry reached down and picked it up awkwardly, moving to the couch and setting it on his knee.  
  
"You play?" she asked, amazed.  
  
"Er," a pink tinge appeared in his cheeks. "I asked my uncle to borrow this last week. He taught me a song that I think you might know .actually I hoped that you might know it. The name of the group, it was on your bag, so I assumed."  
  
"Which is it?"  
  
"You tell me," he said in a deep voice. His hand reached up to the neck of the guitar and pulled a pick from the strings where it was anchored. After positioning his hands in what looked like a painful chord, he began to clumsily pick away at the strings.  
  
She looked up at his expression, smiling slightly at the determined look as he watched his own hands intently moving up and down the taught strings and ebony neck. She didn't pause to tell him that this piece was supposed to be for piano, for she had learned it on the guitar as well. The notes rang out and vibrated off of the walls of the large room. Then, as a surprise to her, his normally husky voice began to sing the somewhat whiny melancholy melody that belonged to the notes he played.  
  
"Can't imagine all the people that you know And the places that you go When the lights are toned down low I don't understand all the things you've seen But I'm slipping in between You and your big.dreams It's always you in my big dreams  
  
And you tell me that it's over Wake up lying in a patch Of four leaf clovers You're restless.and I'm naked You've got to get out; you can't stand to see me shaking."  
  
On and on he played, seeming decent for a novice, but then again, he was The Boy who rarely failed at anything. But he faltered then, stumbling and not knowing what came next and began to get frustrated, anger began to play out on his previously blissful face.  
  
Xanne reached out and took the guitar from him slowly and plucked the melody out a bit more smoothly with the tips of her fingers. She then broke into the chorus and played strong forceful chords, never taking her eyes off of him. Some color rose to his face before he joined her.  
  
"And then you bring me home Because we both know what it's like to be alone And I'm dreaming in your cupboard-."  
  
They both smiled at that line, each changing it as they went along. 'Living room' didn't quite fit right.  
  
"We don't have much room. To live.  
  
.I had these dreams in them I learned to play guitar Maybe cross the country Become a rock star  
  
There was hope in me that I would take you there But dammit you're so young And I don't think I care And if I hurt you I'm sorry Please don't think this is easy."  
  
Xanne kept playing, but fell out of the lyrics about halfway through, seeing if he remembered the words to the next part. It was her single favorite verse, and she watched his face intently as he brought his eyes to hers and fixed his unwavering gaze on her all throughout the stanzas.  
  
"This is a girl who got into my head With all the pretty things she did You know they keep me up in bed  
  
This is to a girl who got into my head With all these fucked up things I did Hey maybe, Baby you can keep me up in bed My constant dream."  
  
Then, both stopped and abandoned the ending and losing themselves in eye contact, simply watch each other. It was strangely enough, not awkward at all.  
  
"Konstantine," she muttered softly, feeling some wave of emotion come around her. "The song, the line is 'my Konstantine.'"  
  
"Well, I changed that bit," he said, taking her hand from the neck of the guitar and into his own.  
  
"We were probably very loud," Xanne looked around nervously. The room was as quiet as ever, still bearing the light glow of the moon.  
  
"I put a silencing charm on the window and the entire room, don't worry."  
  
"Oh, anticipating something?" she laid the guitar down in it's case and sat back on the unpleasant couch, grinning. "Uh, right, so you learned that song in one week."  
  
"More like five days, actually," He his hand back through his fluffy black hair and once again felt the familiar awkwardness set in. "I understand if you don't like it. It's not that I stalk you or something to find out your favorite songs. I just thought you might appreciate it that's all. My uncle said that by-."  
  
She smiled and put her finger to his lips and he abruptly halted his chain of thought, his emerald colored eyes were wide. She leaned towards him but merely pushed him back down onto the couch and laid her head down on his chest. Harry let out a sigh and relaxed a bit, moving his hand to the small of her back. They lay there for some time, him breathing in the scent of her hair, her tracing small circles on his chest through the fabric of his robes. They seemed to drift away into some other world, but eventually, it had to end. But it wasn't truly ending, really.  
  
"I saw you." he muttered at the ceiling, assuming she wasn't awake.  
  
"Hmm?" her soft voice whispered.  
  
"I-I want to show you something else," he sat up slowly and in turn, so did she. They stood up and he took her in his arms, guiding her into the shadows of the room. She was so close she could hear the steady beat of his heart. A bit of doubt crossed his mind. Was it right to show her this? It had been his instinct that first told him she was one to trust she was one to tell.  
  
They stopped in front of a tall shape and Harry drew his arms back from around her, stepping away. Xanne was frightened; the look in his eyes was that of uncertainty, almost cowardice. Harry Potter was no coward.  
  
"Look into it," he said softly, holding his hand out at the shape.  
  
Xanne shifted her body to one side, allowing some of the moonlight to catch on the object. It was a mirror, and not just any mirror, but an enormous mirror that dwarfed the two students in its shadow. On the top was an inscription. She just barely read the rough carvings. It read 'Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi.'  
  
"What does that-?"  
  
"Just look into it," he urged her.  
  
She obeyed, gazing deeply into the mirror, looking for her reflection. Her eyes did not find a girl with rumpled robes and a solemn expression on her face. She glanced uneasily back at Harry and he waved at her, as if telling her there was more to it than that. So she stared more intently into the mirror, not looking for anything in particular, almost gazing through it. Soon, a picture unfurled before her. Her eyes snapped wider than before and she gasped.  
  
She turned and walked into Harry's arms, laying her head on his chest again, shocked. Now she knew why he had that odd look on his face a minute before. She understood where that uncertainty and fear had come from.  
  
His arms instantly cradled her and he couldn't help but notice her breath was a bit more ragged and she trembled slightly within his arms. He knew then that she must have, she absolutely had to have seen-  
  
"You," she said, her voice muffled from his chest. "And them.were they-?"  
  
"My parents," he muttered slowly. "My family."  
  
"But they're.and I was.how?"  
  
"Come over here," they moved back to the couch across the room. He took in a deep breath and sighed before finally speaking. "Before I ask you what you saw, I think I should tell you what I saw. It was last night, and it's why I decided to bring you here."  
  
She shuddered slightly and he held her a bit tighter than before, willing himself to speak to her and explain everything.  
  
"I haven't seen this mirror since first year. It was by accident that I found it, actually. I had been using this room for privacy. The Gryffindor common room offers nothing for those seeking solitude. It was last night that I realized the mirror had been placed in this room, sort of like a hiding spot. I had been warned that the mirror was a dangerous tool, and yet I told myself there was no harm in one look. I saw.I saw you and I. We were in the foreground, you clutching a bouquet, I wearing a suit not unlike one my uncle Vernon would wear to a dinner party. But, in the background.It was."  
  
"Your family," she said softly, a slight mist came over her eyes.  
  
"They were all there, and I suppose the ones I don't know are your family," he choked out. He felt her head nod against his chest as she agreed. Harry began to quiver. "I didn't think you would see the same thing."  
  
"I saw it too." Xanne looked up at the face in front of her, seeming older than she had ever seen him; Harry Potter wore a grimace that looked as if it was there solely to ward off tears. "Is it the future?"  
  
"No," he said, shaking off the look on his face. "It's what we 'desire,' even if we don't know it. The inscription, it means 'I show not your face.not your face, but your heart's desire."  
  
"So, it's what I desire above all?" she brought her hand up to the side of his face.  
  
"Yes, as do I," he put his hand atop hers and held it there, feeling the cold of her hand warm against his skin.  
  
Xanne took her other hand and traced her thumb down the line of his jaw, stopping at his chin and slowly guiding his mouth down onto to hers. It was perhaps the lightest touch he had ever felt, and it breathed life into his timorous expression.  
  
He nudged her backward and they found themselves back on the old couch, still within their warm embrace. He broke the kiss just as lightly as it had begun, and looked down into the almost black eyes that were fixed on his. They were wide and expectant.  
  
One thought.one fleeting thought passed through the head of each as they looked into the eyes of the person before them. Perhaps, in a way, it was perfectly fitting.  
  
At that moment, they both desired something else a bit more than the image they had seen in the mirror.  
  
***End***  
  
  
  
*****  
  
*****  
  
[Please REVIEW even if you're not a Sassy SOBette, but if you are, make SURE you review. Do it for me, will you? : )  
  
The song is 'Konstantine' by Something Corporate, which I just so happened to be listening to when I wrote this short little thing. It's a beautiful yet sad song (that eventually seems happy!) with a dreary piano part that I've been listen listening to a lot lately.  
  
Harry attempting to play guitar and actually succeeding is a bit far fetched, but he's 'The Boy Who lived.' I took certain liberties.] 


End file.
